Dr. Bruce M. Metzger of Princeton (Professor of New Testament Language and
Literature): "A frightful mistranslation." "Erroneous" and "pernicious"
"reprehensible" "If the Jehovah's Witnesses take this translation seriously,
they are polytheists."

Dr. Samuel J. Mikolaski of Zurich, Switzerland: "This anarthrous (used
without the article) construction does not mean what the indefinite article
'a' means in English. It is monstrous to translate the phrase 'the Word was a
god.'"

Dr. Paul L. Kaufman of Portland, Oregon: "The Jehovah's Witnesses people
evidence an abysmal ignorance of the basic tenets of Greek grammar in their
mistranslation of John 1:1."

Dr. Charles L. Feinberg of La Mirada, California: "I can assure you that the
rendering which the Jehovah's Witnesses give John 1:1 is not held by any
reputable Greek scholar."

Dr. James L. Boyer of Winona Lake, Indiana: "I have never heard of, or read of
any Greek Scholar who would have agreed to the interpretation of this verse
insisted upon by the Jehovah's Witnesses...I have never encountered one of
them who had any knowledge of the Greek language."

Dr. Walter R. Martin (who does not teach Greek but has studied the language):
"The translation...'a god' instead of 'God' is erroneous and unsupported by
any good Greek scholarship, ancient or contemporary and is a translation
rejected by all recongnized scholars of the Greek language may of whom are not
even Christians, and cannot fairly be said to be biased in favor of the
orthodox contention."

Dr. William Barclay of the University of Glasgow, Scotland: "The deliberate
distortion of truth by this sect is seen in their New testament translations.
John 1:1 is translated: '...the Word was a god,' a translation which is
grammatically impossible...It is abundantly clear that a sect which can
translate the New Testament like that is intellectually dishonest."

Dr. F. F. Bruce of the University of Manchester, England: "Much is made by
Arian amateur grammarians of the omission of the definite article with 'God'
in the phrase 'And the Word was God.' Such an omission is common with nouns
in a predicative construction...'a god' would be totally indefensible."
[Barclay and Bruce are generally regarded as Great Britain's leading Greek
scholars. Both have New Testament translations in print!]

Dr. Ernest C. Colwell of the University of Chicago: "A definite predicate
nominative has the article when it follows the verb; it does not have the
article when it precedes the berb...this statement cannot be regarded as
strange in the prologue of the gospel which reaches its climax in the
confession of Thomas. 'My Lord and my God.' - John 20:28"

Dr. Phillip B. Harner of Heidelberg College: "The verb preceding an anarthrous
predicate, would probably mean that the LOGOS was 'a god' or a divine being of
some kind, belonging to the general category of THEOS but as a distinct being
from HO THEOS. In the form that John actually uses, the word "THEOS" is
places at the beginning for emphasis."

Dr. J. Johnson of California State University, Long Beach: "No justification
whatsoever for translating THEOS EN HO LOGOS as 'the Word was a god.' There
is no syntactical parallel to Acts 28:6 where there is a statement in indirect
discourse; John 1:1 is direct....I am neither a Christian nor a trinitarian."

Dr. Eugene A. Nida, head of Translations Department, American Bible Society:
"With regard to John 1:1, there is of course a complication simply because the
New World Translation was apparently done by persons who did not take
seriously the syntax of the Greek." [Responsible for the Good News Bible - The
committee worked under him.]

Dr. B. F. Wescott (whose Greek text - not the English part - is used in the
Kingdom Interlinear Translation): "The predicate (God) stands emphatically
first, as in IV.24. It is necessarily without the article...No idea of
inferiority of nature is suggested by the form of expression, which simply
affirms the true deity of the Word...in the third clause 'the Word' is
declared to be 'God' ans so included in the unity of the Godhead."

Dr. J. J. Griesbach (whose Greek text - not the English part - is used in the
Emphatic Diaglott): "So numerous and clear are the arguments and testimonies
of Scriptures in favour of the true Deity of Christ, that I can hardly imagine
how, upon the admission of the Divine authority of Scripture, and with regard
to fair rules of interpretation, this doctrin can by any man be called in
doubt. Especially the passage, John 1:1-3, is so clear and so superior to all
exception, that by no daring efforts of either commentators or critics can it
be snatched out of the hands of the defenders of the truth."

Mr. Jehovah's Witness: Are we to simply ignore these eminent Greek scholars,
and stubbornly cling to the Man-made teachings of the Watchtower, none of whom
had any education to speak of in Greek Grammar?!

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